Keep It Up (Literally)

When I’m out watching magic shows, whenever possible I like to stand in the back and watch. I don’t do it because I don’t want to be part of the audience, or feel I’m better than anyone, I do it because I want to see the show. One thing that happens with local acts is … Continue reading “Keep It Up (Literally)”

When I’m out watching magic shows, whenever possible I like to stand in the back and watch. I don’t do it because I don’t want to be part of the audience, or feel I’m better than anyone, I do it because I want to see the show. One thing that happens with local acts is that they don’t realize how much of their show can’t be see from the 3rd row.


Let’s start with the worst case scenario, you are performing on the floor and the audience is also seated on the floor in multiple rows. If anything happens on your table, it’s really only visible to the first two rows. Yep that means all the action in your cups and balls is really only seen by a fraction of your audience.


Oh, I should clarify what I mean by happening on your table. By this I mean a prop on the table, like a dye box, not something flat like a card. Something lying flat will never be visible to anyone unless you have video projection.


Now let’s look at a better scenario, you are performing on a raised stage. Great, if something happens on your table, it is now visible. However you need to be aware that anything below your knees is invisible. Here’s an example of a group of cloggers I worked with recently, look at the picture:

How much of their clogging can I see from the 4th row?


None of it!


What does this mean to me as a magician? Basically it means I either need to elevate myself, or all the action needs to happen above my bellybutton.

Another Day, Another Shell Game Move

A while ago I posted a picture of some newly acquired three shell games sets for my collection of them. Michael of Wack-O-Magic offered me a set of clear walnut shells he had made, but never figured out a use for. He sent me the only two sets he had made. This isn’t the first … Continue reading “Another Day, Another Shell Game Move”

A while ago I posted a picture of some newly acquired three shell games sets for my collection of them. Michael of Wack-O-Magic offered me a set of clear walnut shells he had made, but never figured out a use for. He sent me the only two sets he had made.

Posted by Louie Foxx on Tuesday, February 19, 2019




This isn’t the first set of clear shells, I also have a set of La Maggiore Cristallina shells, which are beautiful! I never really used them much as they don’t fit into the routine that I do.


With Michael sending me two sets, one set went into the collection and the other set sat on my desk for me to play with. Here’s what I came up with:



Staring at the shells led me to some out of the box thinking that gave me another unique shell game move! I think Terry Seabrooke mentioned how he creates with a prop on an old VHS tape. He said, he puts the prop somewhere where he’ll see it all the time, a place where he’ll basically trip over it every day. That makes him think about the prop in short chunks all day.


I think Terry’s method is a good one, it makes you think about the prop, but you aren’t sitting at a desk having a staring contest with it. I know I’ve come up with many tricks simply using stuff that’s within eyesight of my desk.

Plan B Set List…

Yesterday’s blog post had a back up show set list that I would easily fit in my carry on luggage on an airplane. The next step is going to be to put those tricks into a set list for the show. There are a couple of tricks that are similar in effect, so I’ll have … Continue reading “Plan B Set List…”

Yesterday’s blog post had a back up show set list that I would easily fit in my carry on luggage on an airplane. The next step is going to be to put those tricks into a set list for the show. There are a couple of tricks that are similar in effect, so I’ll have to make sure I don’t put those back to back.


Here’s the list of the tricks from yesterday:


-ACAAN
-Card to Pocket
-Card Memorization
-Blindfold drawing duplication
-Book Test
-Cue Card Confabulation
-Coin Under Watch
-Mismade bill
-Color Changing Hank
-Rubik’s Cube trick
-Torn and Restored Newspaper


Right now I know by looking at this list, I’m going to open with ACAAN and close with Torn and Restored Newspaper. ACAAN is an amazing trick, and there’s a decent amount of action right out of the gate, and it uses person, but they don’t have to be on stage…they could be, but don’t have to. I’ve used the Torn and Restored Newspaper as a closer in the past, so I know it will work there.


Right after ACAAN I’m going to do the Book Test, followed by the Rubik’s Cube Trick. These are both tricks I’ve done in that order in the past as warm up for my show at Fairs, and they are a great combo back to back.


Next I’m going to do Coin Under Watch. It uses a person from the audience, and while I coin trick, I can make it play big. After that I’ll do a solo piece, which will be the Color Changing Hank. This has a lot of action, and a lot of jokes.


Now we’re going to get into a mentalism block. I’m going to do the Blindfold followed by my Cue Card Confabulation. The Blindfold routine I do let’s me play with the person from the audience and it’s a longer piece that hits hard! The Cue Card Confabulation is my own creation and it’s just me on stage talking to people in the audience, and it’s joke will build off the strength of the Blindfold routine. The confabulation routine ends with a great surprise!


Next up I’ll do Card to Pocket, the set up to the Card Memorization, the Mismade Bill and then the final part of the Card Memorization. I’m going to use the time during the Mismade Bill for the two people who will help me with the Card Memorization to sort the cards. That will eliminate some dead time.


I’ll play the Card Memorization as the end of the show, and do the Torn and Restored Newspaper as the forced encore with a, “you want to see one more” line. Here’s the set list:


ACAAN
Book Test
Rubik’s Cube
Coin Under Watch
Color Changing Handkerchief
Blindfold
Cue Card Confabulation
Card To Pocket
Card Memorization part 1
Mismade Bill
Card Memorization part 2
Torn and Restored Newspaper


It’s a decent show, not the show I want to do, but it does look solid for an emergency show.

What’s Your Plan B?

Recently I worked with an act and the airline lost his luggage, and he had to perform for two days without gear. He’s a pro, and was really flustered, I think more at how the airline handled the situation than specifically about his missing gear. His shows were great, but it got me thinking about … Continue reading “What’s Your Plan B?”

Recently I worked with an act and the airline lost his luggage, and he had to perform for two days without gear. He’s a pro, and was really flustered, I think more at how the airline handled the situation than specifically about his missing gear. His shows were great, but it got me thinking about what my backup plan is.


Sure we all can go to the Walmart and put together a show, and I hear performers say that’s their back up plan all time. That’s all good, but whatever is in your “Walmart Show” is material you really need to practice. It should be your “B” show, meaning you do it every now and then. You have jokes and bits, not just do tricks.


This made me think of what I can carry onto a plane, that’s will play big. I’m putting together a list of things so I’m prepared for when this does happen. I also want to do it on my terms, meaning, I have a plan and I’m not scrounging.


The easy starting point is to figure out what card tricks would play big on stage.

1: ACAAN
2: Card to Pocket
3: Card Memorization


These are tricks that have already been in my stage show in the past, so I have good routines for them. These also are very different in texture, they don’t feel like the same trick. Those three tricks are about 12-15 mins. Right away I’m 1/3 of the way to a 45 mins show.


Now to build upon the card tricks to fill in the show. I could add some mentalism:

1: Blindfold drawing duplication
2: Impromptu Book Test
3: Cue Card Confabulation


These three tricks also have different textures and will bring the show to about 30 mins. I can make the the cue cards with the pad of paper from the drawing duplication and I will have the coins from the blindfold, I can use them for a coin trick:

1: Coin Under Watch


I’m going to have to be careful to space out coin under watch and card to pocket as they are both “transportation” tricks. This is not a big deal, I just need to be aware of it. This is going to bring the show to about 33 mins.


There will be room for some small gimmicks, so I can add these tricks:

1: Thumb Tip with mismade bill
2: Dye Tube

Now that I’ve added these two tricks, that puts my show length at about 39 mins. That’s almost a show. Let’s add a couple of small props to the carry on bag:

1: Rubik’s Cube trick
2: Torn and Restored Newspaper

That’s going to bring the whole show to 45 mins.

This show’s carry on list would be:
1: Jumbo deck of cards
2: Regular deck of cards
3: 2 pads of paper
4: Roll of duct tape
5: 2 Coins
6: Book
7: Thumb Tip
8: Mismade bill
9: Dye Tube
10: 2 handkerchiefs
11: Newspaper
12: 2 Rubik’s Cubes



The pack list isn’t very long, and all the props when put together don’t take up much space, and would play well on a stage. All of these are things that have been in my show in the past, so I know the material and have routines for them.


Is this my dream show to do? Nope, but it’ll work in a pinch, and I think it’s a better option than buying some junk at the hardware store and trying to figure out what to do with it!

Make it Easy…

Yesterday I wrote about the biggest problem with most magician’s promo video is the audio. Last night I was playing with the idea of adding subtitles to a promo video to help with bad audio. Here’s what I made: I think that using captions works when used sparingly. I don’t think I’d want to watch … Continue reading “Make it Easy…”

Yesterday I wrote about the biggest problem with most magician’s promo video is the audio. Last night I was playing with the idea of adding subtitles to a promo video to help with bad audio. Here’s what I made:

I think that using captions works when used sparingly. I don’t think I’d want to watch a whole video with bad audio that was captioned. That’d be a bit much, as a booker, I’d be worried that the performer would be unable to understand in a live show.


Keep at upping your audio game as much as you up your sleight of hand game and you’ll do great!

Good Audio…

Whenever I work with an act I always try to watch their promo video. I also do this whenever someone posts their “new” promo video on social media. I do my best to watch them all the way through, but I would say I bail on about 60% of them halfway through. Why don’t I … Continue reading “Good Audio…”

Whenever I work with an act I always try to watch their promo video. I also do this whenever someone posts their “new” promo video on social media. I do my best to watch them all the way through, but I would say I bail on about 60% of them halfway through.


Why don’t I watch them all the way through?


It’s simple, they are really bad. For me the make or break thing for a promo video is good audio, with video quality coming is second. With all the HD cameras now and how cheap they are, there’s no reason you video should have the resolution of a 1980’s sitcom.


Let’s get back to the audio, which is the big one. If the audio isn’t clear, you are better off not having any audio. There are tons of promo videos I’ve seen from comedy magicians, and you can’t understand what they are saying…what’s the point?

I was guilty of having bad audio, until I figured out how to do it. I now record my audio with a voice recorder.

voice recorder




There are two ways to do it, directly off the soundboard, or off of a mic that plugs into the voice recorder. Personally I prefer the mic as it gets my voice clearly (most of the time) and it also picks up the person on stage and audience reactions. I can then mix this with the audio that the camera takes and have audio that’s easy to understand on my promo.

TLDR: they need to be able to understand you.

Monitor the Situation…

One of the pieces of advice I always give to magicians is to get a microphone and use it. Most magicians don’t realize how quiet their talking voice is. Sure you can yell at the audience and many people do, but that’s only good for up to a couple dozen people if you aren’t in … Continue reading “Monitor the Situation…”

One of the pieces of advice I always give to magicians is to get a microphone and use it. Most magicians don’t realize how quiet their talking voice is. Sure you can yell at the audience and many people do, but that’s only good for up to a couple dozen people if you aren’t in a formal theater situation.


When I drive to gigs I always have a battery powered speaker in my car. It’s saved a ton of gigs. I use a Roland Street Cube EX:

This little speaker has enough power for a school assembly, and it’s nice a small!


Here’s the advantage to having a speaker like this: It’s versatile! What I mean by that is that I can use it as a speaker. However if I need to I can use it as a mixer, and more importantly I can use it as a stage monitor! Many smaller events will rent a sound system, but it’s just two speakers on a stand, which will work in a ballroom, but lacking the monitor, that’s where this speaker comes in!


If you don’t know what a monitor is, basically is a speaker on stage that allows you to hear your self. It keeps you from yelling and it will save you voice! When the sound guy asks always tell them you want some of your voice in the monitor!

Solid Background Helps…

The other night I did a corporate gig and before the stage show I did some roving during the cocktail hour. Personally I prefer to do this than not do it at a corporate event, as it basically lets me be my own “opening act”. People start to warm up to me before the show. … Continue reading “Solid Background Helps…”

The other night I did a corporate gig and before the stage show I did some roving during the cocktail hour. Personally I prefer to do this than not do it at a corporate event, as it basically lets me be my own “opening act”. People start to warm up to me before the show.


When doing roving magic, I’m always looking for miracles to make happen. Things that aren’t part of my normal close up set. Typically these use things that are in the performing environment. The round tables in this room had a table cloth with a square cloth napkin in the middle. I’m assuming a center piece was on the napkin at some point. That led to a miracle!


I was performing for a group. I asked a guy to name any card. He said 10 of Diamonds. I handed him the deck, he shuffled them tossed them in the air so they landed on the table, and his named card ended up under the middle of the napkin!


How did I do it? I remember watching Eugene Burger’s video on Matt Schulien’s Fabulous Card Discoveries.


On that VHS tape he did Matt’s Card Under Tablecloth and that’s basically what I did. I did have to adjust it a little bit for the situation. That’s where having a solid background in different tricks and sleight of hand moves comes in very handy! This trick was the talk of my roving set and was totally worth the risk of trying something I’d never done before.


Last Night I Pulled a Kreskin…

Several years ago I went and saw Kreskin perform a the Pantages Theater in Tacoma, WA. He’s an amazing performer and I highly recommend checking out his show if you get a chance. At the end of the show he got a standing ovation from the audience! He deserved the standing ovation, and he worked … Continue reading “Last Night I Pulled a Kreskin…”

Several years ago I went and saw Kreskin perform a the Pantages Theater in Tacoma, WA. He’s an amazing performer and I highly recommend checking out his show if you get a chance. At the end of the show he got a standing ovation from the audience!

He deserved the standing ovation, and he worked for it. By worked for it, at the end of the show, he stood, arms outstretched and waited. People clapped, eventually some stood. Kreskin didn’t move. Eventually everyone was standing clapping!


That’s something very important I learned from watching Kreskin. You have to wait for them to stand up. They aren’t going to instantly leap to their feet like other performers bragging will make it sound like. Go see virtually any show that gets a standing ovation, it’s a slow burn. Some stand, then others, it’s a wave that takes a few moments. My advice is that if you feel a standing ovation coming, wait for it!

Opener?

Earlier today someone in a Facebook group asked “What’s a good opener for kids that I can buy…” There are a few things wrong with this question. I also think this type of question shows what’s wrong with magic, no one wants to think or work, yes they all want to be thought of as … Continue reading “Opener?”

Earlier today someone in a Facebook group asked “What’s a good opener for kids that I can buy...” There are a few things wrong with this question. I also think this type of question shows what’s wrong with magic, no one wants to think or work, yes they all want to be thought of as “artists”.


My first problem with the post is that they are asking for advice about their show without offering us any information about their show. The opener sets the one for your show, if you do a more serious show, your opener will be a lot different from the opener of a comedy act. Just because someone says something is a good opener, doesn’t mean it’s a good one for YOU.


The next issue is that they should be learning their craft. Why aren’t they making a list of what they want to accomplish with their opener? Then do some research and find a trick that fits it, instead of asking a bunch of strangers to feed it to you.


My final problem is they are asking what to buy. I could be wrong, but that’s implying they want something that’s fully formed, and easy to do. They don’t want to work. They don’t want to write the script, or learn some sleight of hand.


My advice is to do the work when you’re a beginner, it makes doing the work later much easier!